A MIDLAND mum whose son was killed in the Bali bombings joined other victims’ families at a ceremony to mark the tenth anniversary of the terror attacks.

Memorial ceremony in London to mark the 10th anniversary of the Bali bombings

A MIDLAND mum whose son was killed in the Bali bombings joined other victims’ families at a ceremony to mark the tenth anniversary of the terror attacks.

A total of 202 people, including 28 Britons, were killed when the Al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah group detonated bombs at two packed nightspots.

Maggie Stephens’ son Neil Bowler, 27, was on a rugby tour when he died in the bombings on October 12, 2002, which also left more than 204 injured.

Mrs Stephens, from Worcester, was among families and friends of the British victims who attended a closed ceremony at the memorial to the victims at St James’s Park, in London, on Friday.

Speaking after the ceremony, Mrs Stephens, 61, said: “Neil was working for the Economist, he was living in Singapore and he played recreational rugby for the Singapore Cricket Club.

“They took a team of 15 to the annual Bali Tens rugby tournament.

“They took 15 and eight of them were killed, all young men.”

She added: “The families worked very hard to get this memorial put up which I think is a good way to remember our loved ones.

“We often come to London and we often come to the memorial. It’s very special for the families to come together because nobody else, unless you’ve experienced something like this, knows how you feel.

“There is a sense of camaraderie from being with people who are in exactly the same boat as you are.”

Relatives of the 28 British victims have also organised a service at St Paul’s Church, in Covent Garden.

Mrs Stephens said: “We’ll all be together then, and then we, as a family, are going to meet up with quite a few of Neil’s friends who are now back in the UK to have a rum and coke, or two, in his name.”

Among the other Bali victims was Oldbury-born lawyer Tim Arnold, who was on a cricket trip to the tropical paradise, and banker Tom Holmes, 39, originally from Droitwich.